From world-famous doors to very special German doors - these doors make history.
Whether it's a flat door, front door, sliding door or revolving door: everyone walks through them every day without paying much attention to them. And yet there are some very special doors in the world. But how did they become so famous? Here is a small selection of famous doors and their history.
The world knows this door
The front doors of No. 10 Downing Street in London is the most famous door in the world. Even someone who is not directly familiar with the address will have seen the black door. Since 1902, it has been the entrance to the permanent official residence of the British Prime Minister. Every official guest of the United Kingdom is photographed in front of it together with the incumbent prime minister. And these images then go around the world.
The most beautiful door: Gates to paradise
As we all know, taste is debatable: But if the expertise of many art professionals is to be believed, the gilded bronze door of the Baptistery in Florence is one of the most beautiful doors in existence.
The famous artist Michelangelo is said to have said that the door is so magnificent that it could also be the gateway to paradise. Since then, it has also been known as the Door of Paradise. It is one of three gilded bronze doors in the Romanesque baptistery and is part of the east portal. Between 1425 and 1452, Lorenzo Ghilberti designed and built the massive door and depicted episodes from the Old Testament on it.
A door just for the emperor
Whether church, mosque or museum: the Hagia Sophia (Greek for "Holy Wisdom") is considered the most important Byzantine building and is also known as the eighth wonder of the world. The imperial door in the 1500-year-old building in Istanbul is a huge and magnificent gateway through which only emperors and their personal bodyguards and entourage were allowed to pass until it became a museum. It is the largest door in the Hagia Sophia and is around 7 metres long. According to Byzantine sources, the original door is said to have been made from the wood of Noah's Ark. Above the imperial door is a mosaic image of Christ on the throne. The emperor bows before it: another sign of the imperial history of this door.
Historic doors in Germany
But why go far away when good things are so close? Germany also has special doors to offer.
The door of the Reformation
This famous door is not known for its beauty and splendour, but rather for its history. On the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg Martin Luther posted his famous 95 theses in 1517, thereby founding Protestantism.
A masterpiece of craftsmanship of its time
The Bernward door is the oldest bronze door of the Middle Ages. It is richly decorated with biblical figures and bears motifs from the Old and New Testaments in 16 images. The medieval door is 4.75 metres high, making it the largest of its era. Bishop Bernward commissioned the two door leaves in 1015 for the western entrance to Hildesheim Cathedral. The cathedral and the doors are part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Recognising the Darß peninsula
On the Mecklenburg-Vorpommern coast, it is an expression of local identity. The Darß DoorArtfully decorated, colourful, playful, carved. Thanks to the passing on of knowledge about this special craft, these doors are still made in this way today. The symbols they bear have various meanings: From protection against evil spirits or lightning strikes to an expression of pure joie de vivre, there is something for every situation in life. The Darßer Tür is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
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